Lay-actuating mechanism for looms



I Sept. 20,1927.

A. DAVIS LAY ACTUA'IING MECHANISM FORiLOOMS Filed Feb. 26. 1926 e Shets-Sheet 1 \nVenTof. Harry A. Davis p 1927- H. A. DAVIS LAY @CTUATING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Filed Feb. 26. 1926 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 ln venTor. HarryA.Dav|s b iww Mam 'An s.

F 1, 9 p e- 1927' H. A. DAVIS LAY ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Filed Feb, 26. 1926 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 Fig. 5.

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lnve nTor. Harry A. DOVIS 'Se t. l p 927 H. A. DAVIS LAY ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Filed Feb. 26. 1926 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 lnvenTor.

Harry A. Davis 7 Y 1,642,769 p 1927' HA. DAVIS LAY ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Filed Feb. 2-5. 1926 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 F1 g- H.

lnvenTOT. Harry A.Davis 1,642, Sept. 20, 192:7. DAVIS 769 l AY ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS- Filed Feb. 2 1926' 6 Sheets-Sheet. 6

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Harry A. Davis ATTys.

HARRY A. DAVIS, OF HOPEDALE, MASSAC PATENT OFFICE.

HUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO DRAIER CORPORA- TION, OF HOPEDALE,MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

LAY-ACTUATING MECHANISM FOR Lt'JOlVlIS.v

-A pp1ication filed February This invention relates to the mechanism for actuating the lay of a loom and also involves the control of the usual protector mechanism.

In a loom the lay, the reed. the hand rail and associated parts which are of considerable weight are carried near the top of the lay swords which swing with a shaft at their lower ends. The lay swords and the parts supported thereby are swung forwardly and rcarwardly by .pitman connections extending to the crank shaft of the loom. A protector mechanism is provided which, in case the shuttle is not properly,

boxed at either end of a pick, acts both to bring the lay to a sudden stop and also to efiect the immediate stopping of the loom itself; The operation of thus stopping the lay and the loom places a great strain/upon the lay actuating mechanism and is complicated because of the length of the lay and the difliculty of insuring the action of the. protector mechanism unless both ends of, the lay are stopped simultaneously.

The timing of the lay movement with respect to the ,n'iovements of the other elements ofthe loomis important to theproper weaving operation and varies according to particular desired conditions. It is desirable, for example, that the dwell of the lay in its movcmentbe controlled as to itscxtent and the relative time of its occurrence. to provide for therequlsite sh fting of, the V shed under thecontrol of a dobby, a cam mechanism, or otherwise, to provlde for the required picking movement of the shuttle, I

or to control the speed of the, initial-movement of the lay away from front center or from the fell. 1

The object of the present invention ispto provide a simple and efficient mechanism for taking care of these things and particularly for providing an eflicient cushioning connection between the lay and its actuating mechanism and also to provide an actuating mechanism which maybe adjusted to vary the timing of the lay movement, The object of the invention is further to provide a lay actuating mechanisn in which the pitmen may be'so connected at either of a plurality of ,pointsto the lay as to enable an accurate and wide-variation in the movementof the lay to be effected. v

. The object of the invention is further to provide a lay actuatingcushioning mech- '26, 1926.. Serial No. 90,775.

anism in connection withthe usual protector 'n'rechanism' so arranged that when protection is called for, the loom will be stopped even if the protector mechanism fails to op- 'erate atone sideof the loom.

The object of the invention is further to provide means acting, whenthe lay is stopped by the protector mechanism, to cause the lay to move backward and thus preventthe lay being locked 'in the most forward posi tion attained when it is'stopped. Such a backward movement of the lay removes any dangerous strain upon the warps. 'The shuttle in being improperly boxed is wholly or partially within the shed .when the lay is stopped and when thelay is locked in its forward stopping position, the shuttle not infrequently so strains the warps as to break or injure them. This danger is obviated by this feature of the invention. 7

The object of the invention is further to provide such ameans acting to cause the lay to move backward when stopped by the protector mechanism in which the amount of backward movement maybecontrolled and adjusted more particularly by adjusting the brake mechanism against which the lay acts 'upon'such backward movement.

The object of the invention is further to provide a cushion connnection between the lay and itsactuating mechanism in combination with thebrake mechanism of the loom by means of which, when the protector mechanism acts,'the lay, after stopping, will rebound to a controllable extent.

These and other objects and features of the invention will I appear more fully in the accompanying description and drawings and will. be particularly pointed out in the claims. v a I Since thepresent'invention is concerned only'with a portion of a loomandisquite independent of the particular construction or type of loom, and'as its adaptability to various types of looms will be apparent to those skilled in the art, it is only necessary, in order to disclosethe principles of the present invention andof a preferred form thereof} to illustrate a portion of an ordi- I of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4i is a side elevation and partially in vertical. cross section of a detail to show the connection from the crank shaft of the loom.

Fig. 5 is a view in front elevation with the breast beam omitted of a portion of the construction shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 2 of another modified form of construction;

Fig. 7 is a view inrear elevation and partially in vertical cross section ofthe view shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a front elevation partially in vertical cross section on the. line 88 of Fig. 1. 1

Fig. 9 is a view looking from the inside toward the left hand side of the loom partiallyincross section on the line 99 of Fig. 5. I I 1 Fig. 10 is a view looking from the inside toward the right hand side of the loom aken partially in vertical. cross section on the line 10--1O of Fig. 5.

V Fig. 11 is a side elevation of a portion of the loom with many of the parts removed to illustrate a suitable form of mechanism for stopping the loom.

. Fig. 12 is a plan view of the loom partially broken away and with many of the parts removed illustrating the brake and means by which the loom .is stopped. A

A portion of the side frames 1 and 2 of an ordinary type of loom is shown. twolay swords 3 and 1 which are mounted to swing in the. usual mannerfcarry the transversely extending lay 5 and hand rail 6. The portion of a shuttle box 7 is shown provided with the usual movable rear binder 8. -The crank shaft 9 of. the. loom is provided with the usual cranks 10" on which are journalled the pitmen Hand 12,

, ThQ,. 11lGCl1&l1lSl11 illustrated is of a usual type. The shipper lever 13 has associated therewith a knock-off lever 14 fulcrumed at 15 on the loom frame. VVhenthis knock-off lever is rockedcounterclockwise onits ful-' cruni. it knocks the shipper lever out of the slot in which it is held'while the loom is running and thereby effects throughclutoh and brake 'mechjanism, (hereinafter described). the innnediate stoppage of the loom. The knock-off lever 1 is. usually actuated from the knock-off frog 16 mounted to slideon the loomframel, This frog is held, normally in its rearward position by a buffer or spring 17 and is provided with an arm extended in line with the knock breaking the lay swords.

off lever 14-, so that when this. frog is moved forwardly to the proper extent, it will operate the knock-off lever and effect the stopping of the loom. A similar frog herein termed the hunter frog 19'is mounted on the right hand side frame of the loom. These frogs are usually provided with steels 20 fitting in pockets in the frogs and which take the blow of the dagger mechanism.

The protector rod 21 is journallcd in bearings 22 on the lay swords beneath the lay and extends entirely across the loom. This protector rod is provided at each end with the daggers 3 and 24 in line with the re spective frogs 16 and 19 and is normally actuated by a spring 25 to depress the daggers into position to engage the frog steels as the lay heats up. Arms 26 extend upward ly from the protector rod 21 and are provided with adjustable set screw heads 27 engaging the rear binders f the shuttle boxes. Consequently if a shuttle is boxed properly at either end of the pick, it forces the binder 8 rearwardly to such an extent as to rock the protector rod and raise the daggers so thatthey will not engage the frog steels as the lay heats up; while if the shuttle is not boxed properly at either end of the pick. the daggers will'not be raised. Hence as the lay beats up the daggers will catch against the frog steels. Consequently the lay is brought suddenly to astop or bangs off. The buffers or stringsof the frogs permit a slight movement of thelfrogs forwardly thus to take up to some extent the shock of the sudden stoppage of the lay and the parts carried thereby and this movement is utilized; as already explained, to effectthe movement of the knock-off lever .14. and the constant stopping of the entire The loom, all in a well known and familiar m e fl/Vhen protection is ca led for, and the heavy mass of the lay swords, lay andother v parts carried by the'lay'swords is brough to a suddenstop, it is impractical, ifnot. im-

posible, to stop simultaneouslyand completely the rotation of the crank shaft. Consequently the rotation of the crankshaft continues to a slight degree. forcing the pitmenforward and thus placing a great strain upon the lay swords and not infrequently Consequently cushioning devices have been provided to ab sorb. to some extent least. the strain thus produced. g v i In the coi'istruction of this: invention,

there isprovidedbetween each pitman and the;correspondinglay sword a movable de v vice herein referredfto as a stand or a lever stand. In the preferred construction illustrated in Fig. 1 and similai' figures, these lever stands are of asimilar construction at each side of the-loom." The lever stand 28 at the right hand side is fulcruined on a rod 29 mounted in the bearing ears 30 on the lay sword where the pitman is usually connected. This lever stand. has its upper arm bifurcated to present the ears 31. The pitman 12 extends between these cars 31 and is connected thereto at either one of a plurality of points. Three such points are herein illustrated at 32, 33 and'34 and the connection is made by means of aneccentric pivot pin. This pivot pin is provided with concentric end sections 35 and 36 fitting aligned holes in the cars 31 and with a central eccentric section 37 fitting a bearing inthe end of the pit-man 1.2. A lug 38 on the pivot pin enables it to be rotarily adjusted bymeans of a wrench or similar device, while a set screw '39 extending through the ear engages one of the holes in the periphery of the pin section 35 lock it in adjusted position.

The lower arm 41 of the lever stand extends downwardly below the fulcrum shaft 29. A stud 42 extends {through the :lay sword and through an aperture in the lower end of this arm. This stud'at the front is provided with a head 43 seated against a plate washer 44 resting on the face of the lay sword. Between the arm 41 and the rear of the lay sword, a cushioning device, shown as comprising metal washers 45 and an interposed washer-46 of leather .or other suitable resilient material, seated on the stud. The rear end of the stud is threaded and provided with the lock nuts 47 and the washer 48. A powerful helical metal spring 49 is seated on the stud between the washer 48 and the rear face .of the arm '41.- The construction is the same at the other side of the loom and needs no furtherdescription.

Under normal operating conditions, the springs 49 of lock nuts 47 are adjusted. to maintain the lever stands with their lower arms forced by heavy pressnre. against the lay swords. Upon the beat up the springs .49 have no material function and the opthe same as if the eration is practically directly to'the lay pitnien were connected swordsin the usual manner. When, however, protection is, called for and the 100m bangs off, the daggers engaging the frogs at the sides of the loom, the lay swords and lay are brought to'a sudden stop and the pitinen. under the momentum of the crank shaft and the train of' nechanism connected therewith advance slightly, thus rocking thelever standson'the fulcrum rod 29 and compressing the springs 49, This, as already poin.te.d. .out, absorbs much of the strain on,

the lay swords and prevents damageto the loom. Thesprings 49, immediately the lay is stopped, expand and thus swing the lay back, releaslng the daggers from the frogs and withdrawing the improperlyboxed shut- G" 5- 1 dv pesition. in .the. shed where it might injure the warpsas here nafter desame points where the pitinen have scribed, When the springs finally close back the-tween the lever stands and the lay envords is not essential. and a variation of this con struction is illustrated in Fig. 2. In this case the stand 50 is fulcruined on the rodQS) as before and has the pitman 12 connected thereto at 51. In this case the stand .is formed with a socket52 in its rear face and in this socket is seated and projects therefrom the powerful helical metal spring 53. The block 54 is secured at 55 to the lay sword opposite the stand and is provided with a stud entering the spring 53. The spring at itsopposite end in'the socket seats against a head, 56 having ascrew threaded shank 57 extending through the stand and provided with the polygonal head 58 and lock nut 59. Thus thetension of the spring is adjustable. The action of the springis substantially the same as .in the previous case. v v

The provision of a plurality of pivot pin holes in the lever stand, as shown at 32, 33

and 34in Fig. 1, together with the rotary adjustment of the eccentric pivot pin by means of which the pitman is connected to, either oneof the holes affords a great bility of adjustment in the timing of the movement of the lay with respect to the other mechanisms of the loom, particularly,

as already pointed out, in determining the position-of the lay with respect to the shift ingof the shed when controlled by a dobby,

.cam or otherwise, or with respect to the mechanism between. the pitmen and lay swords without alteration of existing looms because these stands may be fulcrumed at the hitherto been connected. Furthermore, while the point at which the pitinan is connected-to the lever stand is new considerably above the point at .which it is usually connected to the lay sword, there is no change in the moment of turning which tends'to place strain upon the lay swords, because the force exerted fromthe crank shaft is still exerted on the lay sword at the samepoint as hereto fore. 1- i a It will be observed that, with the pro- .tector mechanism usually einployedand already described-while there are two frogs,

- one at each side of the'loom, which act to check themovement of the lay, only one of these frogs, namely, that the left-hand side, .controlsthe stopping of the loom itself.

the construction shown.

Consequently, if for any reason the dagger at one side of the loom should fail to engage its frog. when protection is called for, the two ends of the lay would not be checked and would not stop simultaneously. While this of itself is not serious, although it places a considerable strain on the lay, it is a serious matter if it is the left-hand dagger which fails to operate because then the loom stopping mechanism would not be actuated and a very great strain would be placed upon the 'lay actuating mechanism.

An important feature of this'invention, therefore, consists in the provision of means for stopping the loom in case, upon bang-off,

the left-hand dagger fails to engage the knock-off frog. This result is secured by utilizing the twisting movement of the lay which takes place when the dagger fails to cooperate with its frog or, more specifically, by utilizing the relative movement between the lay and the lever stand adjacent the one dagger to effect the required protecting sliding movement of the other frog.

In the preferred form of construction provided for this purpose, a frog actuator in the form of a bell crank lever is fulcrumed at 61 adjacent the'knock-off frog and consequently upon the loom side 1, in The arm 62 of this bell crank lever is provided at its upper end with an adjustable set screw 63 threaded therethrough and held in place by a lock nut 64. This set screw forms an adjustable contact with the end of the knock-off frog 16.

The bell crank lever is preferably held yieldingly in contact with the knock-oif frog b a spring 65, connected at one end to the frog and at the other end to the arm 62 of the lever. The other arm 66 of the frog actuating lever extends r'earwardly and is provided with a laterally extending flange 67.

The right-hand lever stand 28, as already noted, is fulcrumed on arod 29., In the present case this rod is extended lengthwise of the lay and forms at its other end the ful- ,crum for the left-hand lever stand 68. This rod is employed as a shaft in the present case and carries adjacent the right-hand lever stand 28, rigidly secured to it by means of the hub 69, a depending arm 70. This arm is forked at 1ts lower end and engages a stud 71 projecting laterally from the lever stand 28. At the other end this shaft 29 has rigidly secured thereto by means of the'hub 72 a second depending arm 73 having at its end. a; laterally projecting stud 74 extending beneath the flange 67 on the frog actuating,

lever.

. the knock oif'frog 16 fails to engage that Assuming now that because of inaladjustment, loss of the frog steel, or for other rea- 'sons," the dagger 23 which cooperates with the shaft 21 is positioned by the influence of its spring 25, due to failureiof the binder 8 to press the arm 26'outwardly. As the lay moves forward the dagger 24' engages the hunter frog checking the movement of the lay at the rightshand end; and bringing it to a stop with a'compression of the frog buffer extent the crank shaft. This forces the pit man at the left-hand side where the'lay is looked a littleforward. But this movement is taken up by the rocking of the lever stand 28 and the compression of the spring 49 to an abnormal extent. The relative movement which thus takes place between the lever stand and the lay at the locked side rocks the shaft 29 because the rocking of the lever stand carries with it the arm on the shaft 29. But when this shaft is thusrocked, it also rocks the second arm 73 at the other side. of the loom. Therocking of the arm 73 is in turn utilized to rock the frog actuating lever 60 and this movement is suificientlto slide the knock-off frog 16 to rock the knockoff lever'14 and stop the loom, just as it would have been stopped if the dagger '23 the right-hand side of the loom and with the dagger 28 failing to engage the knock-off frog at the left-hand side, owing to the ab Y sence of the frog steel. It will be seen that thelay at the left-hand end has advanced more thanat the right-hand end and that the right-hand lever stand 28 has been rocked to compress the spring 49 and is swinging the'frog aetu atinglever 60. V I

The lever-stand or the stand which connects the pitman to the'lay sword may, particularly so far as ,this'l'ast feature .of'the invention 1s concerned, take various forms,

one of'which has already been disclosed in Fig. 2; In th'e case of such a construction,v the arm which actuates the shaft'29,'i and which is located atthe bunter frog side of the loom, would extend upwardly. Such an the arm 7 O to rock the shaft 29 and operate 7 are provided between the pitman and the stand. In Fig. 2, but-one such point is shown and in Figs. 6 and 7 another formof lever stand 77 is shown having a single point of pivotal connection with the pitman 1 2,{a'nd having at its lower end the laterally project 1 ing stud'78 for cooperation with the arm 7 0.

A suitable cushioning device is provided between. the stand 77 and the lay sword in the construction of Figs. 6 and 7 comprising the metalwashers 79 and an interposedwasher 80 of leather or other suitableresilient material and also between the stand 50 and the lay sword in the construction of Fig. 2 where a buffer 81 of leather or other suitable resilient material is shown.

There is thus presented a simple and pre ferred form of mechanism for securing the desired results, the principles of which are applicable to all forms of looms and in most cases without alteration of the existingloom structure, but only with the addition thereto of the required parts.

As has already been pointed out, when the protector mechanism acts, the layois stopped by the engagement of the daggers with the frogs and at the same timethe loom itself is stopped. Any suitable mechanism may be used for this purpose, but in order to embody certain features of the presentinvention, that portion of the mechanism which effects the braking action must be adj ustable to vary the braking action. A suitable form of mechanism for this purpose is illustrated in Figs. 11 and 12. i I A brake shoe 82 pivoted at83 on the loom frame cooperates with a brake wheel 84 secured to the left-hand end of the crank shaft 9. A-rod 84 has a pivotal connection at 86 with the brake shoe and extends forwardly through a lug 87 projecting'laterally from the knock-off frog 16. A powerful helical spring 88 is mounted on the rod between the lug 87 and a washer 89and the force exerted by this spring is adjusted by means of a pair of lock nuts 90 threaded on the rod 85 and abutting the washer 89. A collar 91 is adjustably secured to the rod 85 by the set screws 92 at the rear of the lug 87 and a light helical spring 93 is mounted on the rod 85 between this collar and the lug 87. A lever 95 fulcrumed on the stud 61 held in place by a head 95 has an upwardlyex tending shorter arm 96 engaging a lug 97 projecting laterally from the collar 91. The longer arm of this lever extends forwardly and is engaged by a spring 98. This spring at its lower end has a stem 99 passing through a bracket 100 secured to the loom frame. A pair of lock nuts 101 on the threaded lower end of the stem enables the tension of the spring 98 and consequently the pressure produced by the lever 94 on the lug 97 to be adjusted. j

The shipper lever 13, as usual, is provided with a lateral projection 102. which normally extends beneath the longer arm of the lever 94 and holds the spring 98 under tension with the lever in such position that the light spring 93 from the brake wheel.

The loom, of course, may be driven from holds the brake shoe 82 away any suitable source of power and the mechanism includes means for connecting anddisconnecting the power of the loom. In the construction illustrated, the power is supplied through a belt 103 running over a pulley 104 fast on the right-hand end of the crank shaft 9. A loose pulley 105 is mounted on the same shaft; A belt shifter is illustrated in the form of a yoke 10G engaging the belt 103 and secured to a sleeve 107 slidable' longitudinally on a stud 108 projecting laterally from the side frame 2 of the loom. A lug'109 projecting forwardly from the sleeve-107 is guided in a longitudinally curved bracket 110 secured to the side frame 2. A lever 111 is fulcrumed on a vertical stud 112 secured on a bracket 113 secured to the side frame 1. This lever at its rear end is connected by a rod 114 to the sleeve 107 of the belt shipper and at its forward end engages at 115-tl1e shipper. lever 13.

The shipper lever normally stands in the recess 116 of the slot 117. connected, as usual, and'n'ot here shown, at its upper end to the loom frame is adjust ably secured, by means of the nut 119 on the threaded stem 120 to a projection 121 extending rearwardly and toward the. loom frame from the shipper lever at a point below the pivotal connection 122 of the shipper lever to a flange 123 of the bracket 118. Vhen, therefore, the knock off' lever 14 is actuated, the shipper lever is swung by the spring 118 to rock the lever 1'11 and withdraw the projection 102 from beneath the lever 94.

It will thus be seen that when the protec tor mechanism acts and bang-off occurs, the dagger 23, engaging the knock-off frog 10, moves the knock-off frog forwardly. The brake shoe 82 is immediately thrown against the brake wheel with a yielding pressure determined by the force to which the spring 88 is adjusted. Simultaneously the knockoff lever 14 is actuated and the upper end of the shipper lever 13"swings to the leftunclutc-l'ring or disconnecting the power, in this case by means of the connections enten'ding to the belt shipper 106 and simul- A spring 118 taneously the projection 102 is withdrawn from beneath the lever 94 and the full force of the spring 98, as determined by the adjustment of the nuts 101, is added to the pressure of the brake shoe 82 on the brake wheel 84.

The springs between the pitmen, as, for example, the springs 49 of the construction shown in Fig. 1, are now compressed and the lever stands swing away from the lay, thus storingup power in these springs. This, stored up power at once reacts and the lever stands fulcrum on their connections with the pitmen and not only force the lay back until the lever-stands close up against the lay, but also force the pitmen back and reverse the rotation of the crank shaft against the action of the brake. This kickback of the lay under the reaction of the pitman springs and the slight reverse rota lion of the crank shaft is of great importance because it at once relieves the warps from any strain. The protector mechanism acts, it will be remembered, because the shuttle is improperly boxed and therefore is wholly or partially within the shed. When the lay is stopped, the shuttle is carried well up into the shed toward the fell and places an undue strain upon the warps and if the lay were locked in forward position reached by it when stopped, the shuttle would frequently strain, injure or break the warps. With the present invention the rebound or kick-back of the lay, due

to the reaction of the springs and the lever stand connections with the pitmen, carries it back to a position where the warps are relieved of all strain. The extent to which the lay is thus thrown back is under control because of the means provided for varying the pressure of the brake shoe 82 on the brake wheel by the adjustment of the force imparted by the springs 88 and 98. The spring 88 is so set and adjusted that when the parts stand in their normal position, as shownin Fig. 11, substantially no pressure is exerted by the spring on the lug 87. If both daggers act on their respective frogs a very substantial backward movementof the lay under the control of the adjustments provided is readily secured. If only the right-hand dagger acts on its frog, the lefthand side of the lay moves back a further distance than the right hand side, which moves back about as usual, for the reasons already explained, and in both cases the required backward movement of the lay to protect the shed is readily and adjustably secured.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is:

1. A loom comprising a lay, a crank shaft,

pitmen ournalled on the cranks of the crank shaft and each provlded with a pivot pin bearing, lever stands pivoted on the lay and each provided with a plurality of pivot pinholes, a spring between each lever stand. and the lay yieldable only upon the occurrence of an abnormal strain to permit relative movement of the lever stand and lay, a pivot pin for each pitman having its section fitting the pitm'an pivot pin bearing eccentric to its section fitting the lever stand pivot pin hole, and means for locking each pivot pin in rotary adjusted position whereby the timing and movement of the lay is accurately and widely varied by the selection of the lever stand pivot pin hole and connected to the lever stand by the rotary position of the pivot pin when assembled and adjusted.

2. A loom comprising a frame, a lay, at protecting sliding frog at one side and a hunter sliding frog at the opposite side of the loom frame, a dagger mounted onthe lay at each end to cooperate with the corresponding frog, means for retaining the daggers out of position to cooperate with the frogs when the shuttle is properly boxed and for permitting such cooperation at other times, and means acting, when protection is called for and the dagger cooperates with the hunter frog and the other dagger fails to cooperate with the knock off frog, to effect the required protecting sliding movement of the knock off frog.

3. A loom comprising a frame, a lay, a sliding bunter frog at one side of the loom frame, a knock-off sliding frog at the other side of the loom frame, a dagger mounted on the lay at each end to cooperate with the corresponding frog, means for retaining the daggers out of position to cooperate with the frogs when the shuttle is properly boxed and for permitting such cooperation at other times, a frog actuator mounted on the frame adjacent the knock-off frog, and means to,

move the frog actuator to move the knockoff frog actuated by the twisting of the lay when protection is calledfor and the dagger at the knock-off side fails to engage the knock-off frog, while the dagger at the opposite side engages thebunter frog.

4., A loom comprising a lay, a crank shaft,

pitmenjournalled on the cranks of the crank shaft, lever stands pivoted on the lay, pivotal connections between the respective pitmen and'lever stands, a spring betweeneach lever stand and the lay yieldable only upon the occurrence of an abnormal strain to permit relative movement of the'l-ever stand and lay, a sliding hunter frog at one side of the loom frame, a knock-off sliding frog at the other side of the loom frame, a dagger mounted on the lay at eachend to cooperate with the corresponding frog, means for retaining the daggers out of position to cooperate with the frogs when the shuttle is properly boxed and for permitting such cooperation at other times, a frog actuator mounted on the frame'adjacent the knock-off frog, a shaft journalled on and lengthwise of the lay, an arm on the shaft adjacent the hunter frog, and a second arm on the shaft engaging the said frog actuator whereby, when t-he sald lever stand connected to the shaft is rock-ed on its pivot owing 'to the dagger 7 other dagger fails to engage the knock-off frog, the shaft will be rocked to move the frog actuator and thereby to effect the knockoff movement of the frog.

engaging the hunter frog, while the 5. A loom comprising a frame, a lay, a

slidin bunter frog at one side of the loom,

frame? a knock-off sliding frog at the other side of the loom frame, a dagger mounted on the lay at each end to cooperate with the corresponding frog, means for retaining the daggers out of position to cooperate with the frogs when the shuttle is properly boxed and for permitting such cooperation at other times, a frog actuating lever fulcrumed on the frame adjacent the knock-off frog, a contact device adjustably mounted in the one and engaging the other of said'latt-er elements, and means to rock the frog actuating lever to move the knock-01f frog actuated by the twisting of the lay when pro- 'tection is called for and the dagger at the knock-off side fails to engage the knock-off frog, while the dagger at the opposite side engages the hunter frog.

6. A loom having the construction defined in claim 5, together with a spring acting normally to maintain contact between the knock-off frog and its actuating lever.

7. A loom comprisinga lay, a crank shaft, pitmen journalled on the cranks of the crank shaft and each provided with a pivot pin bearing, stands secured to-the lay and each provided with a plurality of pivot pin holes, a pivot pin for each pitman having its section fitting the pitman pivot pin bearing eccentric to its section fitting the stand pivot pin hole, and means for locking each pivot pin in rotary adjusted position whereby the timing and movement of the lay is accurately and widely varied by the selection of the stand pivot pin hole and by the rotary position of the pivot pin when assembled and adjusted.

8. A loom comprising a lay, a crank shaft, pitmen journalled on the cranks of the crank shaft and each provided with a pivot pin bearing, lever stands pivoted on the lay and each provided with a pivot pin hole, a spring between each lever stand and the lay yieldable only upon the occurrence of an abnormal strain to permit relative movement of the lever stand and lay, a pivot pin for each pitman having its section fitting the pitman pivot pin bearing eccentric to its section fitting the lever stand pivot pin hole, and means for locking such pivot pin in rotary adjusted position.

9. A loom comprising a lay, a crank shaft, pitmen journalled on the cranks of the crank shaft, lever stands pivoted on the lay, pivotal connections between the respective pitmen and lever stands, a spring between each lever stand and the lay yieldable only upon the occurrence of an abnormal strain 'to permit relative movement of the lever stand and lay, a protecting sliding frog at one side and a bunter sliding frog'at the other side of the loom frame, a dagger mounted on the lay at each end to cooperate with the corresponding'frog, means for'retaining the daggers out of position to cooperate with the frogs when the shuttle is properly boxed and for permitting such cooperation atother times, and means acting, when protection is called for and one dagger cooperates with the bunter frog and the second dagger fails to cooperate with the protecting frog and actuated by the relative movement between the lay and the lever stand adjacent the first dagger to effect the res quired protecting sliding movement of the protecting frog.

10. A loom comprising the constri'iction defined in claim 4, in which the frog actuator is in the form of a bell crank lever fulcrumed on the frame and in which an adjustable means is mounted in the arm of said lever to contact with the knock-off frog. 7

11. A loom comprising a lay, a crank shaft, stands pivoted on the lay, pitmen journalled on the cranks of the crank shaft and pivotally connected to the respective stands, a spring between each stand and the lay yieldable only upon the occurrence of an abnormal strain to permit relative movement of the stand and lay, a sliding frog on the loom frame, a dagger mounted on the lay and movable into position to move the frog, a brake mechanism for checking the rotation of the crank shaft operated upon the forward sliding movement of the frog, and means for simultaneously disconnecting the power from the crank shaft whereby, when the forward movement of the lay is stopped by the frog, the said springs first act to permit forward movement of the pitmen relatively to the lay and then re-act forcing the lay backward and also forcing the pitmen backward and thus rotating the crank shaft in a reverse direction against the action of the brake mechanism.

12. A loom comprising the construction defined in claim 11, together with means for adjusting the force with which the brake mechanism acts whereby the extent of backward movement of the lay and reverse rotation of the crank shaft is controlled by said adjusting means.

13. A loom comprising a lay, a crank shaft, connections between the crank shaft and lay including springs yieldable only upon the occurrence of an abnormal resistance to the movement of the lay, a sliding frog on the loom frame, a dagger mounted on the lay and movable into position to move the frog, a brake mechanism for checking the rotation of the crank shaft operated upon the sliding forward movement of the frog, and means for simultaneously disconnecting the power from the crank shaft whereby, when the forward movement of the lay is stopped by the frog, the said springs first act to permit forward rotation of the crank shaft and then re-act forcing the lay backward and rotating the crank shaft in a reverse direction against the action of the brake mechanism.

i i. A loom comprising the construction defined in claim 13, together with means for adjusting the force with which the brake .n'icchvnisni acts whereby the extent of backward movement of the lay and reverse rotation of the crank shaft is controlled by said adjusting means.

15. A loom comprising a lay, a crankshaft, connections between the crank shaft and lay including springs yieldable only upon the occurrence of an abnormal resistance to the increment of the lay, a. sliding frog on the loom frame, a dagger mounted on the lay and movable into position to move the frog, a brake mechanism including a brake shoe and a yielding connection from the brake.

shoe to the frog for checking the rotation of the crank shaft operated upon the sliding forward movement of the frog and means for simultaneously disconnecting the power from the crank shaft whereby, when the forward movement of the-lay is stopped by the frog, the said springs first act to permit forward rotation of the crank shaft and then react forcing the lay backward and'rotating the crank shaft in a reverse direction against the action of the brake mechanism;

16. A 100m con'iprising the construction defined in claim 15, together with means for adjusting the force of the yielding connection between the brake shoe and frog, thereby to assist in controlling the extent of backward movement of the lay and reverse rotation of the crank shaft;

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

HARRY A. DAVIS. 

